


The Rumor Mill and the Ringing Endorsement

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: Falling for You [11]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Family, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-21
Updated: 2013-02-21
Packaged: 2017-11-30 00:14:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/693146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Well I just want to let you know that I'm all for it.  Just gonna put it out on the table.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Rumor Mill and the Ringing Endorsement

**Author's Note:**

> ...and it continues. I dont know what it is about this ship or these characters but they wont stop talking in my head. I'm enjoying their story.

“Mom, we can talk about anything right?”

Stanley stuffed a few tater tots in his mouth as his mother nodded. He loved the tater tots at the diner. Kate sipped her coffee.

“Yes we can. What's up?”

It was the Thursday after Christmas and Kate took her son to Brooks Diner for dinner. They wanted something different after days of holiday food. Stanley was content with a cheeseburger and tater tots. Kate had a grilled chicken wrap, which was delicious.

“Well Cate told me that her mom was talking to Ms. Hillridge here and they said Detective John was a marrying man.”

“O-K.” Kate tried to hold back her sigh. 

She hated being the subject of gossip but they were in a small town now. It was a cross she had to bear. Many outsiders thought of Newberry as a Manchester bedroom community. It was actually an entity unto itself. The denizens wanted it to stay that way. Sometimes it was like living on another planet.

“Does that mean that you two are getting married?”

“Well sweetie, John and I are just dating right now. Marriage isn’t something we've talked about.”

“Why not?” Stanley asked.

“You’ve got to know someone really well before you make a commitment like that. When I get married I want it to be forever. I want us to be a strong, happy family.”

“Cate’s mom said that Detective John’s other wife left him. Why would she do something like that?”

“Sometimes, even when grownups love each other it doesn’t work out. There are a million reasons why but it’s personal between the couple.”

“Did he talk to you about it?”

“Yes, he did.” She nodded.

“But you love Detective John, right Mom? And it’s going to work out right? I just want you to know that I won't mind at all when you two get married. I want you to.”

“You really like Detective John, don’t you?” Kate asked.

“Oh yeah.” Stanley nodded as he drank his root beer float. It was cold but he didn’t care.

“What do you like most about him?”

“He's kind. He smiles easily and he's honest. He doesn’t seem scared that I'm blind…he doesn’t even care. He talks to me like I'm a normal kid; makes me laugh. Mom, he’s just wonderful. 

“He loves you so much, I can tell. He loves me too. Being with us makes him happy. We don’t even need to do anything special. We just have to be together.”

“This conversation is not easy.” She said.

“Why?”

“I don’t want you to get hurt, Stanley. First and foremost I'm a mom so I always have to put you first. No matter how John and I feel about each other we’re going to take our time, talk about things, and not rush. I'm not saying that we’re getting married but if we do it won't be immediate.”

“But is he a marrying man, Mom?”

“I think he is.” She didn’t mean to smile but couldn’t help herself. Stanley could always tell when she was smiling. It wasn’t easy to hide much from him. He was very perceptive and a good judge of character.

“Well I just want to let you know that I'm all for it. Just gonna put it out on the table.”

“Your input is always appreciated.” Kate leaned over and playfully pinched his nose. “I figure you guys had a lot of fun this week.”

“We did! The museum was so awesome; I can't wait to go back. I think the Lego Room was the best part. And we’ve been reading comic books together and other stuff. I gave Detective John a Braille alphabet book just like the one I gave Cate. 

“I think I'm gonna convince him to read Harry Potter. He ran beside my scooter so I could fly all the way down the street yesterday. We had such a good time. Its more than just fun, we talk about stuff too.”

“I'm glad you enjoy spending time with him. I know it was disappointing when Uncle Kyle had to cancel.”

“It’s OK.” Stanley quickly ate the last of his tater tots.

“It'd be OK if it wasn’t OK. I hope that made sense.”

“It did, Mom. I know it’s really expensive but maybe one day we can go to Disney World. I could start saving right now.”

“I’ll look into it.” Kate said and meant it. She knew there were accommodations for every child at the amusement park though it surely got more expensive for each concession.

“OK.” he smiled. “Are you going out with Detective John tomorrow?”

“I think we’ll just have dinner or see a movie. Stanley, did you and Cate talk about anything else?”

“Well she said something about a low sperm count. I didn’t know what that meant and neither did she. So I looked it up online.”

“Did she really hear her mother talking about that?” Kate’s tone lingered somewhere between incredulous and angry. She never wanted Stanley to think she was angry at him because she wasn’t. That was an adult issue and kids shouldn’t overhear that kind of conversation. There didn’t even seem to be a reason for two grownups to be having it.

“Yeah. She probably wasn’t supposed to though. But you and Detective John can adopt kids if you want Mom…just like you adopted me.”

“That’s true.”

“Can I have dessert?” Stanley asked.

“I might be spoiling you.”

“I'm OK with that.”

“I bet. What did you want for dessert?”

“I want a slice of chocolate cake with whipped cream.” He replied. 

“I guess that'll be OK.” Kate smiled.

***

“Stanley and I had an interesting conversation this evening. Some of it was a little troubling.”

She curled up in bed with her big body pillow. Her CD player was randomly playing three of the seven love song CDs that John bought her for Christmas. He knew she was a sucker for them so he bought her a boxed set that spanned 30 years. Kate was really enjoying the music. She fought not to sing along to _Right Here Waiting_.

“What happened?” John asked.

“Stanley told me that he and Cate were talking about things she overheard her mother discussing with Sarah Hillridge.”

“Was it about you and I?”

“Mmm hmm.”

“Sarah is good people and has been through hell on Earth. She's also one of those people who loves to talk. She has an opinion about everything and looks for any forum to express it.”

“Well Cate overheard that your wife left you and you have a low sperm count. Then she told Stanley.”

“Ouch.” John cleared his throat. “I'm sorry that Cate had to overhear something like that but I'm not surprised she told Stanley. They're kids, and best friends. Is he OK?”

“He said we can adopt just like I adopted him.”

“Has he given us his full endorsement?”

“Yes.” Kate nodded.

“Does that scare you?”

“I should say yes but the truth is that it doesn’t. My top priority is always making sure that Stanley is safe and loved. He feels that way with you and that makes me happy. I haven’t always picked the right people when it comes to relationships.”

“Can I ask how many bad boyfriends you’ve had?” John asked.

“Well it’s not just about boyfriends…any relationship can be toxic. I've been dating since I was 15 though so the question might be how many good ones have I had. After a while you start to think it's you.”

“I don’t think it's you, Kate.”

“I dated Brandon for two years in my late teens. We knew it wasn’t for always but he was a good guy. Then I got pregnant and he enlisted and it just didn’t work out. It took me a while to shake all of that off.”

“You were pregnant?” John asked.

“It happened when I was 19. I had the pregnancy terminated, for a multitude of reasons.”

“None of which you have to explain to me. I'm sure it was one of the hardest choices you’ve ever made but it was your choice.”

“Then I met George about five years ago, just a few months after Stanley came to live with me. We dated for a year and a half. In the end he said he didn’t want kids. I just think he didn’t want Stanley. He's my son; we’re a package deal.”

“Yes you are. I dated a woman I met online for about six months. Her name was Jill Morris and I developed feelings for her. She said I was too old-fashioned for her. She thought I was boring. I might be a little boring but I like myself just fine. I don’t want to change for someone to love me.”

“You suit me just fine, John Barton. I don’t think you're boring.”

“Good.” He smiled. “Kate, we’re not going to rush into anything. We’ll talk all the time that you need. I'm not going anywhere; I want to be with you. If I run too far ahead then you can just reach out and pull me back.”

“We’ll just be in this relationship.” She said. “That’s what I want. We don’t have to talk about it all the time or over think it. Something wonderful is happening between us…lets enjoy the experience. When its time to take the next step we’ll know.”

“That sounds good to me.”

“So where are you taking me tomorrow?”

“I thought we might stay local and have a night out at The Elbow.” John said. “The food is good and they’ve got a good selection of beers and spirits. Kyle just got some dart boards in the back. Do you know how to play darts?”

“Not really, no.”

“Are you interested in learning?”

“I'm interested in being with you and having some fun. The Elbow sounds good to me.”

“I’ll pick you up at 7:30.” 

“I’ll be ready.” Kate said. “If you were here I’d kiss you.”

“I’d enjoy every moment of it. Are you going to take a bath before bed?”

“It'll just be a shower tonight. I'm going to try to get to bed early.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow. Sweet dreams, Kate.”

“Goodnight. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

John hung up the phone and sighed. It didn’t please him to be the subject of gossip though this surely wasn’t the first time. People talking about Kate were more bothersome. It was part of the reason for going to The Elbow tomorrow. So far he’d kept his relationship with her in Manchester unless they were at their respective homes. 

The town knew anyway…they always knew. But John figured if he let them glimpse then maybe they wouldn’t speculate so much. Of course people in Newberry speculated about everything. Good, bad, private, public; it was all up for grabs. He remembered how bad it got after Laura left him. 

Just because much of it was in his favor didn’t mean John wanted to be in the middle of the quagmire. Kate was new and people wanted to know her story. She’d made a few friends but for the most part she worked and took care of her son. While he didn’t know her whole story either, John was pretty sure she wasn’t running from a murder rap or a botched bank robbery. Kate wanted change; she just didn’t quite know what she was getting when she moved there. Despite all of that, he was still so grateful that she and Stanley did.

***


End file.
